Cairo, 14 March 202 – The Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC)and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Cairo in a move designed to advance the two institutions’ relationship and thereby promote trade and investment flows between Arab and African countries.

The MoU was signed by Mr. Oussama Kaissi, Chief Executive Officer of ICIEC, and Professor Benedict Oramah, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank. It creates the framework for a range of collaborative initiatives and programmes.

Under the terms of the MoU, ICIEC, which is the insurance arm of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group, and Afreximbank will partner on activities such as risk sharing arrangements, joint business development initiatives, fund mobilization, information exchanges and capacity building. In addition, the MoU enables ICIEC to access Afreximbank’s digital platforms to enhance Arab-African trade.

The signing of this MoU marks a significant milestone in the relationship between Afreximbank and ICIEC, as this cooperation agreement will consolidate and expand the activities that the two institutions have been conducting jointly.

Oussama Kaissi, CEO of ICIEC, welcomed the signing of the MoU, the latest initiative in the long-standing cooperation between Afreximbank and the IsDB Group. “We look forward to effect this wide-ranging MoU with Afreximbank, the leading African trade finance institution whose mandate is to facilitate, promote and expand extra-and intra-African trade. We are confident that the MoU will further consolidate our existing good relations with the bank in our mutual objective of boosting intra-Arab African trade in Member Countries common to both entities, through ICIEC’s tried and tested suite of de-risking and credit enhancement solutions.”

Professor Benedict Oramah, President of Afreximbank, commented: “We have for some time enjoyed a constructive and productive relationship with ICIEC, and I am delighted that our co-operation has now been formalized in this Memorandum of Understanding. As Afreximbank continues to expand its activities to accelerate Africa’s participation in global value chains, improved trade and investment links with the Arab world will only grow in importance”.